Lynn Armour Hannings, has been teaching at the Violin Craftsmanship Institute since 1986. She is a former teaching assistant of William Salchow. She received her degree of Journeyman from the American Federation of Violin and Bow Makers in 1984 and was elected to membership in 1985. In 1989, Ms. Hannings was granted both a Fulbright Scholarship and the Annette Kadé Fellowship for the Advanced Study of the French School of Bowmaking in Paris, France, with Bernard Millant, the world renowned authority of French Bow Making. In 2011, she received a Special Recognition Award for her bowmaking efforts from the International Society of Bassists. She is a member of the Entente Internationale des Maitres Luthiers et Archetiers d’Art. As a conservatory trained musician and performer who has studied musicians’ injuries, she has worked individually with musicians, for over 40 years, to meet their unique playing requirements. Ms. Hannings sells bows to professionals in the U.S. and internationally. In addition to bowmaking, she has extensive experience in the area of bow repair and restoration.
Horst L. Kloss, Mittenwald-trained Master Violin Maker, has worked with fine stringed instruments and bows for over four decades. In 1970, he established Kloss Violins, the oldest professional violin shop in New England, where he specializes in violin making (using the golden proportions to design instruments. He also specializes in acoustic adjustment, custom instrument set-up, and the repair, restoration, and appraisal of historic instruments and bows. His formal training was at the State Bavarian School of Violin Making in Germany, where he earned his Journeyman’s diploma in 1964 and his Master’s Degree in 1972. He also had the privilege of training under the tutelage of Bruno Paulus from 1964 until 1965 while he was in Germany, and then under the guidance of Carl Becker (Sr. and Jr.) when he came to the U.S. to work at William Lewis & Sons in Chicago. He is one of fewer than 100 violin makers whose training and skills qualify him for full membership status in the Amer. Fed. of Violin and Bow Makers. And he was selected from a handful of Federation members to take part in an intensive training at the Smithsonian on varnish restoration and conservation. He has cared for collections of note, including the Boston Museum of Fine Arts’ historic stringed instruments. Mr. Kloss has taught violin repair and restoration and violin building at UNH’s Violin Institute since 1996.
Francis Morris is a 1974 graduate of the world-renowned violinmaking school in Mittenwald, Germany. Subsequently he worked with Fritz Baumgartner in Basel, Switzerland, and at the shops of Hans Weisshaar and Robert Cauer in Los Angeles. Since opening his own shop in 1984, he has provided his customers with high quality instrument restoration, fine sound adjustments, and the sale and service of instruments and bows. He won an award for tone at the prestigious Violin Society of America’s 2002 competition. He is a member of the American Federation of Violin and Bow Makers and the Violin Society of America. He currently lives and has a shop in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, nestled in the Berkshires near the Tanglewood Summer Music Festival.
Paul Wiessmeyer graduated from the world-renowned violinmaking school in Mittenwald, Germany, in 1981. Subsequently he worked at the shops of Hans Weisshaar and Robert Cauer in Los Angeles before opening his own shop in LA in 1986. Since 1991, he has owned and operated Paul Wiessmeyer Violins in Boston, Massachusetts, a full-service shop specializing in repair, service, sound adjustments, and sales of violins, violas, and celli. His clients include symphony players, professional musicians, conservatory students, and schools. He is a member of the American Federation of Violin & Bowmakers and the Violin Society of America. Paul has won several gold medals for his instruments at the H. Wienawski competition and the violin making competition of the Violin Society of America. In 2016, he was selected to judge the Violin Society of America’s making competition.
George Rubino has been in the forefront of American bow making for over 40 years. His interest in the French tradition of bow making and his quest for knowledge facilitates his ability to make bows known for their fine aesthetic quality and capability to produce everything the music demands of a musician. Mr. Rubino studied bow making with William Salchow and was his teaching assistant at the UNH Violin Craftsmanship Institute for many years. He was appointed as a bow making and bow repair instructor for the UNH Violin Craftsmanship Institute in 1988. In addition to maintaining his own shop and working at the Institute, Mr. Rubino lectures and teaches workshops on the making/restoration of bows, frogs, and buttons, tool making, and machine operations in the United States, Europe, and Australia. George Rubino bows, and bows made by his students, are used by many of the finest string players worldwide.
As a repair luthier with over twenty years of experience, I can honestly state that the bow rehairing workshop taught by Lynn Hannings was the most incredible and informative week of instruction that I have ever received. Her classroom demonstrations are comprehensible and always followed by one on one instruction that is tailored to each individual. Lynn graciously shares invaluable knowledge that most could never obtain without taking this course. She genuinely cares for the health and happiness of musicians and provides a wonderful model for future bow makers.
